If you're struggling to find space in your home, then you probably already use your laundry room as an extra storage room.
But what happens when you're running out of laundry room storage options? Do you need to find another room now that laundry room storage isn't possible?
No! The laundry room is perfect for all types of storage and all you have to do is increase your storage space.
Here's our guide on laundry room organization and storage ideas:
Adding Cabinets
The first step is to buy or build cabinets for your laundry room. You can place cabinets on the floor next to the washer and dryer. Alternatively, you can affix them to the wall.
These cabinets are ideal for storing laundry-related items. Here, you can store sheets, detergent, soaps, etc. This leaves adequate space for your other items.
Before you fill up your empty space with other items, however, make sure you only keep what's necessary.
In fact, one of the first things you should do is to create a list of all the items you currently keep in your laundry room. This will give you a better idea of what you want to keep and what's unnecessary.
This is something you should do every 3-4 months to keep your laundry room clean and with adequate storage space.
Removable Shelves
If your cabinets aren't sufficient and the nooks and crannies can't pack all your household items, then the next step is to install a few removable shelves.
These are shelves that you can affix to your wall to put any extra items. Make sure you can easily remove these shelves in case you need to replace them with larger ones.
These removable shelves might not be able to hold lots of weight. But they do a great job of holding some of the extra weight that you don't want to keep lying around the floor.
Hanging Your Clothes
Rather than keeping your clothes in a large hamper, you can hang them to free up space in the laundry room.
You can install a clothing rod akin to a curtain rod in the room. Place as many clothes hangers as you can on this rod. You'll keep the clothes here before and after you wash, dry, and iron them.
If this isn't possible, you might want to consider buying a small wardrobe for the laundry room. This should be enough to just keep a few clothes. You want to ensure this small wardrobe doesn't take up too much space in your laundry room.
Washer and Dryer Combo
Does your washing machine take up too much space? What about your dryer?
If the answer is an astounding "yes" to both then you want to get a washer and dryer combo. Often, these aren't ideal for larger loads of laundry. However, if you need to make more space in your laundry room then you want to stick to one machine.
If you can't get a washer and dryer combo machine, then you can do the old-fashioned step of drying your clothes by hand. You can buy a clothing hanger where you hang them to dry.
If you keep this in your laundry room, make sure you place a mat underneath to collect any excess water. However, it's always best to keep these clothes in your bathroom or balcony.
Downsizing Items
Another great option to ensure you have more storage space in your laundry room is to downsize some of your existing items.
Let's take your ironing board as an example. If you have a large ironing board, see if you can switch to a smaller one. This might not be as efficient, but the tradeoff is that you'll have more storage space. Make sure you choose one that you can easily fold away.
Likewise, you might have a small table where you keep your clothes as they wait to be ironed. Consider replacing the table with a foldable one.
You can also remove items that you don't need. For example, if you don't have many clothes that need ironing, perhaps you don't need the ironing board after all. It's best to remove items first before replacing them by downsizing.
You also want to consider what items you can use on their own. For example, you might need a mop but not a broom. If you have a large vacuum cleaner, there's no need to get a smaller one for simpler jobs.
Best Practices
Let's wrap up our guide with a few best practices you should consider to improve your storage space.
One is to only buy in bulk if necessary. While it's often tempting to buy almost everything in bulk to save money, this might take up too much space in your laundry room. You want to have a minimalist approach when buying products for your laundry room.
While you don't want to overstuff a shelf or cabinet, make sure you use as much space as possible. Before filling up a new cabinet, make sure that the previous cabinet is full and has no more free space.
You should also only use the laundry room for mostly storing laundry-related items. If you need to store miscellaneous items, try to confine them to one corner of the room. This makes them easier to access and ensures you don't lose anything important.
You can consider buying large plastic boxes to store any excess items. You can label these boxes so you know exactly what's inside at all times.
Create More Space in Your Laundry Room
Now you know how to create more space in your laundry room.
One of the quickest ways is to add cabinets for the floor and the walls. Removable shelves are another way to get quick storage.
Consider hanging your clothes or putting them in a small wardrobe. You can also downgrade to a washer and dryer combo to take up less space.
If you need help cleaning out your home or are moving to a new home, you might need the College Hunks Hauling Junk to help you out. Reach out to us to see how we can help!